Active voice essays

In a sentence written in the active voice, the subject of sentence performs the action. In a sentence written in the passive voice the subject receives the action. Active: The candidate believes that Congress must place a ceiling on the budget. Passive: It is believed by the candidate that a ceiling must be placed on the budget by Congress.

Students writing academic essays can sometimes tie themselves in knots trying to make sentences sound “formal” – which often (mistakenly) is taken to mean putting a sentence in the passive voice. Here’s an example (thanks to the UVic Writers’ Guide):

What is Active Voice in Writing? What does active voice mean? In the active voice, the subject always “does” the action of the sentence. Chronologically, the subject will come before the verb in the sentence. Most writing occurs in the active writing voice, as it is generally clearer and more concise.

Take a piece of writing that you’ve produced, and go through working out if each sentence is in the active or the passive voice. One clue to look out for when searching for sentences in the passive voice is the use of “was”: “The theme that was most dealt with by the 16th Century poets…” “His death was regretted.”